Pursuit for the Truth
by Cronomon
Summary: 765 Pro itself is in danger of shutting down and it's up to Makoto and Yukiho to find out why and how to stop it. Only now there're Iori and Miki to serve as a rival team, plus another kidnapping and a burning building. Sequel to Search for the Producer.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I do not own The iDOLMASTER.**

**Haha, well, a sequel just kind of came to xXxWoLfwrIT3rxXx so I wrote it out. Involving the hero Makoto, the heroine Yukiho, and the possibility of 765 Pro being shut down!**

**First chapter edited 5/13/12.**

**Please enjoy!**

* * *

><p>"Hey, hey, did you hear? About Makoto and Yukiho?"<p>

"Hm? What?"

"They saved a man from getting kidnapped a couple weeks ago! In fact, I heard Makoto had an all-out brawl with this old dude and his three minions while Yukiho snuck in and saved the guy."

"Wow, that's so cool!"

"Right? The twins are calling them the hero and heroine of the town."

"What's this I hear about the twins and heroes?" Makoto appeared in front of the gossiping girls, one eyebrow arched as she waited for an answer. "Don't tell me they're going around spreading more rumors. I told them to stop yesterday."

The girls were completely unfazed by the hero's presence, instead attempting to glomp her as they exclaimed, "Makoto-kun! Please tell us about how cool you were in the rescuing!"

Makoto took a step back, suddenly she being the one intimidated. Seriously, she knew a lot of girls in the school were crazy about her but they didn't have to go all-out like that... it was scary. Rubbing the back of her head, she sighed and replied, "You know, it was Yukiho who did most of the rescuing. Why don't you go give her some attention?" Oh, wait, wrong thing to say. Yukiho hated attention. "Actually, scratch that. Just... stop with the rumors, okay?"

"Whatever you say, Makoto-kun!"

The spiky-haired girl grimaced and walked away, thinking about all the things she would do to the twins once she got her hands on them. Would they never grow up? Makoto honestly hadn't even had a proper fight with Kuroi. She'd gotten punched in the face. Hearing everyone talk about how cool and amazing she'd been when Yukiho had done most of the actual rescuing was annoying.

As she headed to the front of the school to begin her walk home, she was pleased to spot Yukiho heading the same direction. Calling out to her, Makoto quickly caught up and began a friendly chat.

"You been getting bothered by anyone lately? In school, I mean."

Yukiho nodded. "A few... they seem to have the wrong story, though. I don't have any super spy techniques I could have used to save Producer-san."

"Yeah," Makoto said in amusement. "It's just Ami and Mami exaggerating again. I'll have to give them a piece of my mind when we see them again. Ah, hey, Yukiho, wanna come over to my house today?"

"Eh?" the offer had made the other girl freeze on the spot.

Makoto blinked, and then laughed sheepishly. "Sorry, was that too sudden again? I'll work harder on that. But yeah, I mean, I went over to your place so it's only fair if you come over to mine, right?"

"You don't have to do that just to make it fair, Makoto-chan-."

"No, I want you to come over, too. You're my friend, after all." Makoto replied earnestly.

Yukiho looked at her hesitantly but the boyish idol's smile didn't waver. Finally, Yukiho nodded and agreed. "Okay. Thanks for having me over..."

* * *

><p>"You know, for a heroic adventure there wasn't too much praise from the others in the end," Makoto sighed as she sprawled across her living room floor. Kicking her feet idly, she played around with the remote in her hands and then glanced up at Yukiho to see her reaction.<p>

The brown-haired girl smiled in response, careful to remain perfectly polite as a guest in her friend's house. The two had just been watching TV as a means to pass the time but once a mystery program came on the events of two weeks ago had come to mind and diverted their attention.

"A hero always does things for the good of the people," Yukiho teased her. "Not for the rewards."

Makoto groaned and rolled onto her back, staring at the ceiling wistfully. "Yeah, but that doesn't mean the hero doesn't want the rewards."

"You rescued Producer-san. That's already amazing in and of itself."

"Objection!" Makoto suddenly sat up, pointing directly at her friend, who shrank away in surprise. "Oh, sorry, Yukiho. I meant to say that that's wrong. I didn't save Producer-san. You did. I just got punched in the face."

Yukiho frowned at her words, protesting, "But we wouldn't have even been able to find Producer-san if it weren't for you."

"No, that's wrong, too. You asked the Jupiter members where the nearest abandoned building was so technically you're the one who found Producer-san."

"But… but we wouldn't have even run into them if you hadn't been the one to suggest going to 961 Pro in the first place," Yukiho pointed out triumphantly.

Makoto opened her mouth, thought the events over, and then shrugged. "Well, yeah, that's true. But in the end you did more of the important stuff so you're the one who saved Producer-san. It's all about the numbers, you know?"

"So doesn't that make me the hero, then?"

Makoto paused at this. "Wait…"

Yukiho had already begun to laugh so Makoto joined in. "Fine, you got me there too. But that doesn't change the fact that more people should have acknowledged us! Miki barely even registered that we were the ones to get Producer-san back, all she cared about was fawning over him."

"The fact that he's back matters more than who got him back."

"You're just full of wisdom today, aren't you?"

"The heroine is always the voice of reason."

Makoto grinned, leaning over and nudging her friend. "Well, you are a pretty awesome heroine. Just so long as I'm the only hero you're ever gonna stand by."

"I couldn't imagine anyone else."

The two burst into laughter once again. Makoto loved moments like these, when she had nothing to worry about and all she had to focus on was having a good time with Yukiho. Peaceful, no work to be done, just spending time with her friend. It was the perfect time.

"Yukiho, remember those poems of yours you showed me?"

This quieted Yukiho quickly, as she suddenly seemed to take a more cautious composure and nodded.

Makoto smiled kindly to show she meant no harm, and said, "Well, they were pretty awesome. Thanks again for letting me see them."

"Oh," she seemed relieved that that was all. "It was no problem."

"But I'm really happy that you trusted me enough to show them to me," Makoto said. "Seriously, it means a lot. I know I was being kind of pushy back then so... I was wondering how I could make it up to you." She smiled sheepishly and then stood up. "Hang on a sec, I'll be right back."

Not sure of how to respond, Yukiho only voiced her okay and watched Makoto leave the room. She was not gone long, though, as she soon returned with a thick notebook in her hands, still smiling but somehow looking nervous as well.

Despite not knowing what Makoto was intending to do, Yukiho said, "Makoto-chan, I showed you my poems because I wanted to. You don't have to make it up to me at all."

"Well, I want to do this for you," Makoto replied, sitting down in front of her. "So let me, okay?" She grinned, and when Yukiho smiled back she held out her notebook. "Right. Here you go. Be gentle on me, yeah?"

Yukiho took the book politely but held off on opening it. She observed the cover, running her fingers over the carefully written words: Makoto's Book. She glanced up again at her friend, who was looking at her expectantly. "What is this?"

"My songs," Makoto answered. She paused, scratched her head a little, and then added, "Lyrics, I mean. Song lyrics. Haha, it's a little embarrassing but... yeah. I thought it'd be fair since you showed me your poems."

"Are you sure it's alright for me to see this?"

"Hey, come on, don't drag it out." Makoto leaned over and tapped the cover. "Read them and tell me what you think. I insist."

Yukiho, sensing her friend's determination, nodded and opened the book...

... just as Makoto's cellphone began to ring. Yukiho immediately composed herself in case the caller was someone important but Makoto was much more casual (and annoyed) as she answered it.

"Oh, hey, Haruka. What's up?" After a few moments of listening, Makoto frowned and said, "Wait, wait, wait, slow down. What's happening?" A pause. "Okay, but what channel? Alright, I'm going there right now."

Makoto lowered her phone, shrugged in response to Yukiho's questioning look, and quickly changed channels to the one Haruka had demanded she look at. What turned up on the screen was a shot of the 765 Pro agency and the words 'SHUTTING DOWN' slapped across it.

Makoto practically did a double take while Yukiho stared in disbelief.

"… Haruka? Yeah, we'll be over there in twenty minutes."

* * *

><p>"Just what is the meaning of this?" Iori was demanding when Makoto and Yukiho walked in.<p>

The majority of the idols were already there, save for Azusa, and were all hounding Ritsuko for answers. In the corner of the room, the Producer and Kotori were sitting at their desks desperately answering an onslaught phone calls.

"If it's shutting down why weren't any of us told about it?" Iori continued, pretty much ignoring the two new arrivals.

Ritsuko was seated on one of the couches, surrounded by idols on all sides. Chihaya, Takane, and Haruka were also sitting but the rest stood menacingly over the female producer. Iori was obviously the one in charge while Yayoi stood meekly beside her and the twins behind her. Miki was on her other side, offering her own comments whenever Iori paused, and Hibiki was standing further away playing nervously with her hamster.

"This decision was just as sudden for us, you know," Ritsuko answered, referring to her fellow desk workers. "Out of nowhere the president just calls and says 765 Pro's been bought out. Next thing we know there're reporters and phone calls coming in from all over the place and the worst part is none of us even know why."

"Bought out?" Chihaya repeated, her brows furrowed. "By who?"

Ritsuko shrugged with a heavy sigh and pointed at the TV, which was playing the program Makoto and Yukiho had just seen. The scene had changed from the picture of the agency and now there was a side-by-side shot of a reporter and a man none of 765 Pro had ever seen before.

"That guy?" Hibiki cringed.

"He looks sketchy," Mami said accusingly.

Makoto found herself agreeing, as just the sight of the man cheerfully answering questions gave her a wary feeling she usually only got around things where 961 Pro were involved. Wait... so maybe that meant...

"Ritsuko-san! That man is from 961 Pro!"

"What?" nearly everyone in the room responded automatically.

Makoto nodded seriously, despite already realizing that she'd reacted too quickly. While she should've waited to think it out a little longer, she'd already blurted out her thought so she might as well go on with it. "Kuroi never knows when to give up. By now I think all he can think of is bringing down 765 Pro, so he's the one who bought it out and is now shutting it down."

"Wait a minute, Makoto-kun," Miki spoke up, doubt clear in her voice. "Just because this is something bad happening to 765 Pro doesn't automatically mean it's Kuroi behind it all."

Ritsuko nodded, looking relieved that this time she wouldn't be the only one opposed to one Makoto's ideas. "Miki's right. Besides, don't you think it's a little too soon for Kuroi to be acting? It's only been a couple weeks since Producer-san was kidnapped."

"That's why he's doing it now," Makoto argued. "He can't sit still. Plus it's exactly because people will be thinking that way that he won't get caught. And even if he does, so what? For some reason, the president already agreed to sell 765 Pro to him so it's not like he's doing anything wrong by making a decision for his own company. He owns 765 Pro now so people can't object to him deciding to shut it down."

"Where is the president?" Iori asked, folding her arms against her chest sternly. "I want to have a word with him."

Ritsuko sighed and rubbed her temples, obviously not in the mood for an argument. "I don't know," she replied. "Ever since that abrupt call we've been trying to get in touch with him but he never picks up."

"Then, then," Ami interjected, "maybe that means Kuroi-ojiichan kidnapped Shachou too!"

"Ehh?" Yayoi was understandably concerned by that statement. "That'd be terrible!"

Iori whipped out her cellphone and immediately headed to the door. "Whether he's been kidnapped or not that's no excuse to just abandon his company like that! I'm going to find him."

"What?" Miki headed after her, looking confused. "Deko-chan, do you even know where to look?"

"Don't call me that!"

"Iori-chan, I wanna go, too," Yayoi made to follow but was stopped by Ritsuko's sudden growl.

"Nobody's going anywhere," the female producer ordered. For some reason, Makoto noted, despite the fact that it was Iori and Miki standing near the door Ritsuko was looking at _her_ instead. Makoto made a face and pointedly stepped closer to Yukiho, who had held a very neutral expression the entire time.

Makoto observed her friend for a second and then leaned closer, asking in a low voice, "Are you okay?"

Yukiho tilted her head slightly to the side, offered a small smile, and shrugged. "What's happening now is awful. But... for some reason I get the feeling that it's not very serious. Like it won't actually happen. I don't know... maybe I'm just in denial."

The boyish idol considered her words briefly but before she could respond, Ritsuko spoke up again.

"Since we have no evidence that 961 Pro is even involved in any of this we can't make any moves for now," Ritsuko said. "I think we should just wait to hear more from the president."

At this point, nobody amongst the idols looked completely satisfied with that decision. Even Chihaya and Takane seemed somewhat uncomfortable with it, which was further proved when Takane said, "No matter what, sitting around isn't going to solve anything. Perhaps we should find a more action-oriented plan?"

"I can get Inumi to sniff out the president," Hibiki offered. "We'd find him in no time!"

"But there is the possibility that he's simply so busy with things that he can't find the time to speak with us," Chihaya pointed out quietly. "In that case searching for him would be unnecessary and inconvenient."

Iori frowned, clearly upset with her fellow idols' inability to come up with a solid decision. "Obviously the first thing to do would be to investigate the scene of the crime," she said.

"And just where would that be?" Ritsuko challenged.

"Wherever that man is, of course!" Iori replied, pointing a finger at the television interview that was still going on. "Even if he's not part of 961 Pro you can't deny that he's suspicious. I'll find him and make him answer all our questions."

Miki brightened up as though Iori's idea had already solved everything for her. "Then Miki will join you," she said cheerfully. "After all, Miki can't let Deko-chan go off and face dangers all by herself."

Iori immediately opened her mouth to object but was surprisingly beat to it by Mami.

"That's no good," the younger twin complained. "765 Pro's hero-heroine combo is Makochin and Yukipyon! You can't ruin it, Iorin."

"Tell that to her," Iori shot back with a gesture at the blonde next to her. Miki smiled shamelessly. Iori continued, "If Makoto and Yukiho want to solve this they can feel free to. No one's stopping them."

Makoto twitched at this and Yukiho glanced around. Indeed, all eyes were on them now. Makoto suppressed a sigh- she'd actually been hoping they could leave this to Iori, since the Minase daughter did have all the money and connections that would make the entire case go by quicker. Still, what kind of hero would reject a mission?

Apparently, the Futami twins had been thinking along the same lines because Mami exclaimed, "A challenge from a rival! Makochin, you have to defend your honor for yourself and Yukipyon. Don't lose!"

"Iorin, Mikimiki! You guys issued the challenge so it'd be a disgrace if you lost," Ami called. "Do your best!"

Ritsuko covered her face with her hand. "Is this just a game to you two?"

"Since the company's shutting down our schedules are clear," Haruka said thoughtfully, pulling off her famous nonowa face. "So they actually do have the time to investigate, right?"

"Don't encourage them," Ritsuko moaned.

"A challenge is a challenge," Miki decided. She turned to Iori and offered a smile. "Deko-chan, let's win, okay?"

"You guys do realize that the entire company is at stake here." Iori looked as though she'd given up hope in humanity.

Makoto laughed a little nervously and glanced over at Yukiho. "Looks like everyone's really pumped up for this," she said. "What do you say, Yukiho? Up for being the clever heroine again?"

"Whatever I can do to help," Yukiho answered firmly.

"Alright!" the twins cheered.

"Team Mikimiki and Team Makochin on a quest to discover who's behind buying out 765 Pro and shutting it down! Good luck you two," Ami shouted.

"765 Pro fight-o!" Mami added.

Iori rolled her eyes and left, quickly followed by Miki. Makoto shrugged and grabbed Yukiho's wrist, also exiting the building. Honestly, a new mission proposed on such a whim really did seem like a joke. But it wasn't like they had anything better to do.

* * *

><p>"We said we'd accept their challenge but we don't even know where to start," Makoto sighed.<p>

Iori had apparently already gotten a good idea of what she would do, seeing as as soon as she'd walked out of the building she had led Miki to her own personal car and ordered to driver to take them somewhere. Makoto and Yukiho, meanwhile, had simply decided to head a random direction and were now currently walking in that random direction wondering what to do.

"Really?" Yukiho's tone of surprise caused Makoto to stop and turn around. "I thought we were headed to 961 Pro," the brown-haired girl explained.

Glancing around, Makoto realized that they were actually on the road that led to their rival company. "Oh, wow. I guess even subconsciously heroes know what they're doing. But of course they'd need their heroine to point it out."

"You don't have to keep up the act anymore, you know," Yukiho said, but it was clear she was suppressing a laugh.

"It's fun," Makoto responded, resuming her walk. "Anyways, I guess we can talk to Jupiter there and ask them about it. Since they're the only ones in 961 Pro we're on semi good terms with..."

"Shouta-kun and Hokuto-san seem nice," Yukiho offered. "It's only Touma-san who's a bit rough."

"Yeah, I guess. And knowing our luck he's the one we're probably gonna run into."

"I'm so sorry!"

"Huh?"

Yukiho held out the black notebook she'd been holding in her arms the entire time. "I'm still carrying your notebook! I didn't even realize it!"

"... Is that all?" Makoto sighed, running a hand through her hair. "It's fine, Yukiho. You can always read it later."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah. It's not as though you'd lose it or anything, right?" Smile. "I trust you so it's fine."

Despite seeming a little uncomfortable with the pressure suddenly put on her, Yukiho nodded and held the book tightly to her chest as they walked. Glad that it had been settled, Makoto changed the subject and began talking about the happenings of her latest job at a radio interview. Yukiho seemed to be enjoying the story as she quickly lightened up, but minutes later she tapped Makoto's shoulder and pointed at a man who was walking on the other side of the street.

"Makoto-chan, isn't that...?"

Makoto also paused to observe the man. His head was held high, his back was straight, and his strides were long and brisk. Clearly a man very sure of himself, and very much in a good mood. Well, of course he would be.

He'd just come back from an interview involving the closing of 765 Pro.

* * *

><p><strong>I think I made Makoto act a lot like America from Hetalia, what with all the hero talk. But oh well. This time I threw in a rival detective team: Iori and Miki! Just 'cause I like them, honestly. If I ever get stuck with Makoto and Yukiho scenes I'll probably just switch to them.<strong>

****In any case, thanks for reading and please review!****


	2. Chapter 2

"Makoto-chan, I can't believe you tackled him!"

"I'm sorry, I just wasn't expecting him to run like that," Makoto defended herself. "And I kinda thought he'd be tougher..."

Of course, it was hard to believe that she was the victim as she was currently in a dark alley sitting on the man who had supposedly bought 765 Pro. The man himself was in a daze from hitting his head on the concrete ground. Makoto hoped it wasn't major- the last thing she needed was to injure the man who held all the answers to 765 Pro's questions.

Yukiho squatted down beside the man, peering at him worriedly. "Um... are you okay?"

The man moaned a little in response.

"I think that's a positive," Makoto said. She winced at the stern look Yukiho gave her. "Sorry."

Minutes later, Makoto had gotten off the man, he was confirmed not to have severe brain trauma (so far), and the three of them sat down in the dark alley to discuss the happenings of 765 Pro and possibly 961 Pro.

"Did Kuroi hire you?" Makoto demanded.

"No comment."

"Are you working under 961 Pro?"

"No comment."

"What's your name?"

"No comment."

"Do you know who we are?" Yukiho tried.

"No comment."

"You are absolutely no help," Makoto stated.

"No comment."

"Why did you buy 765 Pro?" Yukiho asked.

Maybe the man got tired of giving the same answer or maybe he took pity on the cute girl asking him questions (no comment on the boyish looking one who'd tackled him) but either way he replied, "Because it was offered to me."

"By who?" Makoto demanded.

"No comment."

"Is Kuroi the one who forbade you from giving us any real answers?"

"..."

Makoto slammed a fist to the ground, ignoring the pain it caused her hand. "I knew it! When it comes to bad things happening to 765 Pro it's always Kuroi behind it all. Come on, Yukiho, looks like we really are going to 961 Pro."

Without another word she stood up and walked away, only stopping at the end of the alley to wait for Yukiho. The shy girl didn't keep her friend waiting long but once she'd reached her she said, "Are you sure it's okay to leave that guy there? What if it turns out his head really did get damaged?"

"He's a grown man," Makoto answered, continuing her walk to the 961 Pro building. "I'm sure he can take care of himself."

"If you say so..."

Before too long they were completely out of the man's sight and hearing. He'd remained seated on the alley floor, watching the two leave, but now that he was sure they were gone he dug out his cellphone from his pocket, dialed a number, and held it to his ear.

"Ah, yeah... They're headed to your place right now. No, I didn't tell them anything. Okay... bye."

* * *

><p>Makoto didn't know where Kuroi's office was. The 961 building was huge, considerably larger than 765 Pro's, and there wasn't anything in the directory that outright said "President's Office". She'd already tried asking the lady at the front desk but apparently if she didn't have an appointment she couldn't meet Kuroi. Even if it was a situation in which the fate of her company would be decided.<p>

"Why don't we ask the members of Jupiter?" Yukiho suggested.

"I'd like to avoid them as much as possible," Makoto replied, running a hand through her hair in exasperation. "But I guess if we have no other choice... Okay, we'll ask them after we try one last thing."

Yukiho, rarely one to object, nodded. "Alright, what do you have in mind?"

"We'll search the building ourselves."

"I think we'll get in trouble for that."

"Only if we get caught. Besides, I have a pretty good idea of where his office is already. If we can just get there we'll barge right in and demand answers," Makoto spoke as though her plan would fix everything in the world.

"Okay."

Makoto looked at her in surprise. "Well, you agreed much more easily than I thought you would."

"You were expecting more of a fight?" Yukiho in turn looked surprised by that. "But I trust you, Makoto-chan. You wouldn't let anything dangerous happen, right?"

The complete innocence in her voice almost made Makoto give up the plan right then and there. After all, snooping around a rival company's building wasn't exactly what anyone could call safe. But Makoto knew that no matter what she'd protect Yukiho, and besides, this was for 765 Pro's sake. There wasn't really a choice in the matter.

"Of course," Makoto smiled reassuringly. "Nothing bad's gonna happen, anyways. Let's go."

* * *

><p>Makoto's idea of Kuroi's office being at the very top floor was incorrect. That was actually a dance studio and a gym. Her prediction of his office being in the floor below it was also incorrect. After searching three more floors, room for room, Makoto had to admit that this was in fact not working.<p>

"Should we ask Jupiter now?" Yukiho said in the elevator as they headed back down to the lobby.

"I guess we have no choice," Makoto agreed. The elevator dinged and reached a halt on the sixth floor, allowing a man in a business suit to get inside before continuing on. Makoto took a step back to allow the man more room and then said, "What floor is their office on again?"

Yukiho shrugged. "I don't remember. But I'm pretty sure it was in the directory."

"Alright, we'll check down there then."

On the fourth floor another man stepped in, forcing the first one to stand between Makoto and Yukiho so he had space. Makoto suppressed the urge to push past and stand near Yukiho instead. It was only an elevator ride, anyways.

The elevator reached a halt once again on the second floor, which nearly drove Makoto insane with the laziness of people these days. Until she realized that there was actually no one there and it was the floor that the second man had wanted to get to.

The only thing wrong with that was that the second man had grabbed Yukiho and taken her with him.

"Hey, wait a- what the hell!"

And now the first man was blocking Makoto's way, and the second man had disappeared with Yukiho and the doors were closing and the elevator was moving and _what the hell just happened_?

The elevator dinged and the doors opened to reveal the lobby.

Many people were surprised when a full grown man flew out of the elevator and landed on the floor with a thud. Makoto didn't really care. She needed to get to the second floor because that was where Yukiho was because Makoto had been so ridiculously stupid and allowed them to get separated and maybe Yukiho was getting hurt right now and Makoto had completely broken her promise and she really needed to get to the second floor.

Pushing her way through the crowd of people that had formed, she made her way to the stairway and bolted up, reaching the floor above in record time and all but tearing through the hallway screaming Yukiho's name and thinking about how stupid she'd been and how she'd never forgive herself if something happened to Yukiho.

Because the entire thing had all been a trap. Set by that man in the alley. Makoto seriously wished he really did get a head injury. From the start Kuroi had wanted to get back at Makoto for foiling his plans two weeks prior, and now he'd taken Yukiho and he was going to hurt her and do things to her and Makoto had no idea what to do because she couldn't find her and she couldn't find him and now people were yelling at her for making a racket.

So half an hour later she found herself back at 765 Pro, clutching the notebook she'd found sitting innocently on the floor.

* * *

><p>"Hibiki," was the first thing Makoto said as soon as she entered the room, "find Yukiho."<p>

Several of the idols had already left, but Hibiki and Takane were still in the room. The two of them looked surprised to see Makoto, particularly her without Yukiho and the absolute anger in her eyes. When neither of them answered, Makoto walked up to Hibiki and stared straight into her eyes, repeating her request slowly and firmly.

"Yukiho?" Hibiki said uncertainly. "She...?"

"Kuroi kidnapped her. I need you to find her. You said Inumi would be able to sniff out the president in no time so I need her to do it for Yukiho."

"Okay, wait, what happened?"

Impatiently, Makoto told the two of the events that had just occurred, her voice noticeably getting harder when she got to the part about Yukiho getting snatched. When she was finished Hibiki looked enraged while Takane only frowned.

"To think that their president would stoop to such a low level," Takane murmured. "This is an unforgivable act."

"Of course it is," Hibiki sounded just as angry as Makoto looked. "We don't have the time to get Inumi from my place but Hamuzou's with me right now." Completely on cue, the hamster popped up on Hibiki's shoulder, looking as able for the task as a hamster could. "Just take him with you. I'm going to call everyone else. This is a declaration of war."

"Thanks," Makoto replied simply, offering a hand for the hamster to jump on. Never mind the fact she couldn't speak hamster, she just needed something that could lead her to Yukiho. "I'm off."

"You'd better find her, you got that?" Hibiki called after her.

"As if I could do anything less.

* * *

><p>Hamuzou was actually a lot more reliable than Makoto had expected. Just allowing him to run in front of her to lead the way was efficient, since he was able to avoid pedestrians' feet and cross roads safely. Makoto really had to give Hibiki more credit for her pets.<p>

"Once we get there," she told the hamster, ignoring the strange looks she was receiving from random people, "you can go back to Hibiki. Just make sure you stay safe or else she'd never forgive me."

Hamuzou squeaked in response and made another turn. Makoto honestly had no idea where they were going as this was a part of the city she'd never been to before. Not to say it was particularly dangerous looking, it was just unfamiliar.

Finally, Hamuzou came to a stop in front of a very normal looking building. Seriously, it looked just like any other office building. But he squeaked assuringly so Makoto had no choice but to believe him.

"Thanks... you can head back now. Don't get killed, okay?"

Hamuzou saluted and immediately scurried away. Makoto felt a little bad for making the guy run all the way here and now back without a single break. Maybe when this was all over she'd buy him some sunflower seeds. Hamsters liked sunflower seeds, right? She shook her head- this was off topic and irrelevant. Besides, once she got Yukiho she could ask her. Yukiho probably knew the answer.

She walked in, more than ready to take on any grunts that might throw themselves at her. She'd done it once for Azusa, she'd do it again for her best friend. But, as she should have expected, the building was empty. Completely empty. As in, abandoned empty.

Seriously. Kuroi really had a thing for abandoned buildings. That guy was a nutcase.

Yukiho wasn't in the lobby- not that Makoto had really expected her to be anyways- so the hero took the stairs, always ready to defend herself incase an old guy came out to punch her. Or anyone, really. It didn't have to be Kuroi so long as someone came along for Makoto to take her anger out on.

But no one did. The rescue itself was performed incredibly smoothly and without any trouble. And that alone should have sent warning signals off to Makoto. But it didn't, because she'd found Yukiho and that was all that mattered.

* * *

><p>As soon as she untied the rope that bound Yukiho's arms and legs (a classic move, really) the words came spilling out endlessly.<p>

"I'm so sorry. I was so stupid and I can't believe I let that happen."

"It's okay, Makoto-chan. Neither of us were expecting it."

"That's the thing! _I_ should have expected it. You trusted me to protect you and I completely broke that trust."

"... But you came here to save me, didn't you?"

Makoto looked at her in confusion, mouth open to say that of course she'd come to save her because it wasn't as though she could just abandon her, when Yukiho pulled her into a hug.

"In the end you're still protecting me, so how can I say that the trust has been broken at all?" she said simply.

Makoto didn't respond. No matter what Yukiho said she'd still failed and Yukiho had still been taken away. Those facts would never change. She'd let Yukiho get into danger, alone at that, and who knew what else she'd gone through while Makoto had been looking for her? This was a complete failure.

"I knew you would come for me, Makoto-chan. Please stop blaming yourself."

"Yukiho..."

And that was when she noticed it. Makoto paused and sniffed the air, and then immediately whirled around, eyes widening at the smoke that was beginning to seep into the room.

"Wait a minute... the building's on _fire__? _Are you serious?" she screeched.

"What?" she heard Yukiho say uncertainly, but Makoto didn't respond as she rushed to the stairs and looked down.

Sure enough, thick clouds of smoke were coming out of the lobby, although as to how it had gotten that way so quickly without her noticing it previously was behind Makoto. In any case, it didn't seem as though they would be getting out of the building easily.

"That is so not fair! Is Kuroi trying to kill us or something?" Makoto growled, hurrying back to Yukiho's side. She grabbed Yukiho's wrist firmly, hoping to calm down her friend before Yukiho started hyperventilating, and glanced around the room to try and look for a way out.

The windows were always an option but there was no way in hell she was about to ask Yukiho to jump out of a building. Unless...

"Fire escape! There's a fire escape!"

Without even waiting for a response Makoto dragged Yukiho over to the window and opened it easily, climbing out to the rusted metal platform and helping Yukiho do the same.

"Is this... safe?" Yukiho whimpered as the stairs creaked threateningly under their weight.

"I'll protect you," was the best answer Makoto could offer at the moment.

Carefully, she led Yukiho down a few steps, but as expected of such an old building the metal structure all but fell apart. Yukiho screamed as the floor beneath her crumbled, but Makoto held onto her tightly, pulling her back to a more sturdy area.

"Makoto-chan..."

"Trust me. I'm not about to lose you twice in one day," she whispered reassuringly. She looked back at the remnants of the fire escape and narrowed her eyes. "Still, this is troublesome. No choice but to go back inside, unless we want to hang around here until this part crumbles, too."

The two crawled back through the window into the building, and Makoto went over to the stairs, wondering if perhaps they could make it through the lobby before the entire thing burst into flames.

Was she willing to put Yukiho through that risk?

So long as there was a chance Yukiho would survive she would always take it.

"Yukiho, we're going downstairs, okay?"

The brown-haired girl nodded, and then suddenly broke into a violent cough. Makoto frowned - the smoke was already bothering her and they hadn't even gotten to the worst of it. She would have to act fast.

"Let's go."

They hurried down the stairs, and Makoto counted each floor they passed. Yukiho had been at the top on the sixth floor. As they passed by the fourth, Makoto tried to quicken their pace, but while they were on the staircase heading to the second floor, a piece of it suddenly broke and fell. Now there was a gap between where they were, and the remainder of the stairs.

Makoto sized up the hole - it wasn't very big. Anyone could jump across. Figuring this, she leapt across easily and turned back, waiting for Yukiho. Her friend was giving her the most fearful look she'd ever seen, completely like a rabbit waiting to be killed by some predator.

"Yukiho, just jump! I'll catch you, I promise!"

"But..."

"I told you I would protect you, didn't I? Didn't you say you trust me?"

"..."

"Yukiho, I will protect you even if it means my death. Believe me."

Looking surprised by the resolve in her voice, Yukiho swallowed and then nodded slowly. She closed her eyes and leapt across, landing safely in Makoto's arms. Makoto steadied her, and then they continued downstairs.

* * *

><p>Something Miki absolutely loved about the forehead girl was her ability to stay calm no matter what the situation. Even looking at the smoking building, knowing that two of her friends were currently inside it, Iori seemed completely unimpressed.<p>

"Of course Makoto would get them into this kind of situation," Minase's only daughter sighed.

Upon receiving a call from Hibiki, the two had agreed to go back to the agency, but while driving back had seen Makoto enter a suspicious looking building. Rather than continuing on, Iori and Miki had gotten off and decided to wait outside incase anything bad happened and Makoto needed their help. Therefore they were surprised when a completely unfamiliar man in a business suit had walked out of the building, dusting off his hands and walking away without a care in the world. And upon looking in they found half the lobby set ablaze.

"Miki didn't know things like that could happen without us noticing," Miki commented.

"You just weren't paying attention," Iori shrugged. "Well, no matter. I've already called the fire department and they should be here any second now."

"That's good. Miki doesn't want Makoto-kun and Yukiho to die."

Iori eyed her warily, and Miki smiled back. The day had been fun, tagging along the 'odeko' and fitting together pieces of the mystery until the entire thing was solved. Miki was certain that Iori had had fun too, despite the smaller girl's annoyance at the blonde. Well, it wasn't Miki's fault anyways. Teasing Iori was just too easy, and strangely amusing. No wonder the twins did it so often.

"Just what are you thinking about with that kind of look on your face?" Iori scowled.

Miki waved a hand dismissively. "Nothing you need to concern yourself with, Deko-chan."

"Who're you calling 'Deko-chan'?" Iori immediately snapped.

Miki only laughed and waved some more. Really, this was too fun. Iori was just an entertaining person in general.

* * *

><p>The front door was blocked by flames. Figured.<p>

Yukiho was now struggling to breathe, and even Makoto was having some trouble with the thick smoke and fire around them. They needed to get outside _now _before one of them collapsed.

Running to the window beside the front door, Makoto peered outside in hopes that hey, maybe there were people who'd actually noticed the freaking building was on fire and would try to help. The people she wound up seeing sparked a rather mixed emotion within her: part relief, part holy-crap-you-guys-suck-why-are-you-just-standing-there-and-not-helping-us.

"Miki! Iori! Get us out of here now!" she banged on the window to help get their attention. "The front door's blocked!"

Miki was the one who spotted them first, and actually had the nerve to _wave_ before alerting Iori of their presence. The two then headed over, Iori not even looking particularly impressed by the situation.

"The window won't open from the outside," Iori called.

Makoto scowled and attempted to open it from the inside, but of course it was so old it wouldn't even budge. _Goddamn it._

"At least get some help!" she yelled.

"Don't worry~ Miki has an idea," the blonde spoke up from the other side of the window.

Behind Makoto, Yukiho had another deadly coughing fit, and Makoto glared at Miki in an attempt to hurry the lazy idol up. Miki waved again, took a few steps back, took off her shoe and promptly threw it at the window.

With a yelp, Makoto ducked and also pulled Yukiho down as the shoe sailed over their heads. Another one soon followed it, and a fair sized hole was now in the center of the window. It was dangerous, with all the glass shards now around them and also jutting out from the window, but at this point Makoto didn't really care.

She let Yukiho out first, with Iori and Miki helping from the other side, and then crawled out herself, ignoring the pricks and cuts the shards cut into her arms as she went.

"Haha, you're really dirty, Makoto-kun," Miki greeted once Makoto had landed safely outside.

Both Makoto and Yukiho collapsed to the ground, gasping for fresh air, but Makoto still frowned at Miki and Iori.

Miki grinned. "It's great that you both got out alive~"

* * *

><p>"I can't believe you just stood there and didn't help us at all," Makoto said for the fourth or fifth time on their way back to the agency. This comment was directed towards Iori, as she did have to admit that without Miki there was a high chance both Makoto and Yukiho wouldn't have gotten out of the building as safely as they had.<p>

The fire department had arrived shortly afterward, and after them the police. Makoto and Yukiho were given ample time to rest and recover, as well as answer a few questions, and now all four of them were headed back to the office to report.

"That's not true," Iori said in a matter of fact tone of voice. "I called the fire department, didn't I? That's hardly doing nothing."

"You could've told us when the building caught on fire."

"That's when I called them. After that I forgot to tell you."

"Are you kidding me?"

Yukiho laughed a little and tugged on Makoto's sleeve to calm her down. "It's alright, Makoto-chan, we made it out in the end. And besides, I have some information that the man told me while he was taking me here."

Makoto seemed torn between deciding whether she should be happy or upset about this. "Information is good. The fact that you got kidnapped is bad."

"But either way your information doesn't matter 'cause Deko-chan and Miki already solved the case," Miki interrupted with a cheerful smile.

"You what?" Makoto did not sound pleased. Well, considering all the stress, worry, and panic she'd gone through in the course of an hour and then discovering that someone else had already figured out the problem, it was understandable.

Iori smirked, for once not caring about the degrading nickname Miki had given her. "Yes, while you were busy running around the 961 building the two of us were researching. I'll tell you the entire story once we get back. I don't want to have to repeat myself."

That said, she quickly sped up, clearly intending to leave behind Makoto and Yukiho so as to arrive at the agency first.

Miki grinned. "Deko-chan's pretty cool with all her resources. She's smart, too. Miki thinks Miki made the right choice siding with her." And on that happy note she followed her partner, effectively abandoning the other two.

"What siding?" Makoto grumbled. "She just tagged along so she could make fun of Iori more."

"Well, if they worked it all out in the end then it doesn't really matter," Yukiho replied. Makoto only sighed in response, and Yukiho smiled sympathetically. "You know, I think you were really cool too, Makoto-chan."

"You don't have to say stuff just to make me feel better."

"No, really. You saved me twice and you were really cool doing it," Yukiho insisted. "Miki and Iori never had to go through something like that. All they did was piece together some evidence. Makoto-chan's the real hero in all this."

Makoto gave a sarcastic laugh. "Right. Hero."

"I'm serious." Without warning, Yukiho clung on to Makoto's arm and leaned her head on the boyish idol's shoulder as they walked. "A hero saves people. You saved me. Therefore you're a hero."

Makoto couldn't ignore the smile that grew on her face as she heard those words.

"Yeah, well... thanks."

"And you know, I finished reading your lyrics earlier."

"Earlier?" Makoto thought back, unsure of a time when Yukiho could have possibly been reading her notebook before dropping it, but shrugged it off. She smiled nervously. "So? Any feedback you can give me?"

"They're wonderful."

Pause. "Ah... thanks... but you know, you can be honest with me-."

"I mean it, Makoto-chan! There was one I especially loved." Yukiho thought for a moment, and then sung quietly, "_I embraced my cushion tightly. Ah, it was just another dream. How many times has this happened? I really need to say it to you properly._"

"_When I try to go outside, I blink at the dazzling light,_" Makoto joined in. "_I remove the chain lock and lift the stopper.__"_

"_And every time I push the pedals my short hair waves_

_No matter on what kind of road, _

_I'll move forward without giving up."_

* * *

><p><strong>Ah, it's kind of a feel-good ending but kind of not. No, overall it should be a pretty happy ending if a little abrupt. I didn't want to add a scene explaining everything 'cause I thought it'd make this chapter too long, and I didn't want to throw it into the next chapter 'cause that'd make it too short. So I'm cutting it altogether. Sorry.<strong>

**Haha, even though Makoto's the hero she can't really win everything, especially when she spent most of the chapter snooping around and then looking for and saving Yukiho. So Team Mikimiki wins! I apologize if you're unhappy with that, though. I just wanted to give two of my other favorite characters the spotlight. Plus I got a little stuck with the building-on-fire thing.**

**And just in case you were wondering, the song Makoto and Yukiho sing at the end is Jitensha.**

**Well, anyways, thanks for reading! I hope you liked it :3**


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